Santoor sounds to ring in next Feluda flick

Not the jingle of bells, but the soulful sounds of the santoor will follow sleuth Feluda - the hugely popular character created by master storyteller Satyajit Ray - during his adventures in the Bengali film "Badshahi Angti" (The Emperor's Ring) set for release this Christmas.

The movie is the celluloid adaptation of Ray's "Badshahi Angti", the first major novel to feature Feluda and his teenaged cousin-assistant Topshe.

They are drawn into the hunt for a priceless royal Mughal ring that goes missing as the duo are holidaying in Lucknow.

Directed by Ray's son Sandip, the film's background score will feature around five to six santoor-based sections contributed by santoor maestro Tarun Bhattacharya.

"The score will enhance the sentiment of the movie. For example, for portions shot in Lucknow, audiences will get the feeling of being there not only visually, but also musically," Bhattacharya told IANS.

"The recording session is on Oct 31," he said, adding he had earlier worked on background score of "Royal Bengal Rahasya" (Royal Bengal Mystery), the last Feluda film.

"It is a different setting this time... so, yes the mood (of the music) will vary," Bhattacharya said.

Produced by Shree Venkatesh Films, the film has been shot largely in Lucknow and Haridwar while the last leg was wrapped up in Kolkata.

It stars actor Abir Chatterjee in the lead role and Sourav Das as Topshe.